Concept View

Project313 Somerset

LocationOrchard Road, Singapore

Completed2010ArchitectAedasType
Leisure and Retail

DisciplineArchitecture + Environment

Speirs + Major lit the vast, translucent facades of 313@Somerset, a new landmark shopping mall on Singapore’s Orchard Road, using cool white LEDs as a sophisticated alternative to the neighbouring colour-changing exterior lighting schemes, while also saving on energy and maintenance.

The mall, owned by the Australian developer Lend Lease and designed by architect Aedas, has a 95-metre frontage on to Orchard Road, with another 70 metres facing on to Somerset Road. An array of more than 1,500 LED washlights, housed in custom white light boxes is integrated within the fritted glass cladding system. The LEDs are programmed to create video animations and lighting effects. Speirs + Major designed a number of subtle monochromatic themes for the façade briefly interspersed with eye-catching kinetic displays – but the option is also open for local artists to create dynamic content for the scheme in future.

The light boxes range in size from 60cm x 30cm to 1m x 50cm and were custom-built for the project by local systems integrator Kurihara Kogyo. Tests were carried out on site using full-scale prototypes to ensure the LEDs were being correctly thermally managed, and that the lit effect was as designed. They are triggered by the mall’s lighting management system and timed to shut off in the small hours.

Speirs + Major also lit areas of the mall such as a ground level colonnade, circulation spaces and a dining terrace.